On 29/08/2012 Richard Delaney wrote:>I reckon Andrew McAuley's last trip was one of the most committed trips>of the last 100years.>He still took a sat phone and that did not detract one iota from my estimation>of his commitment or the length of any yardstick.>R

At 7.15pm NZ time on Friday 9th February 2007, the New Zealand coastguard received an almost indecipherable transmission on channel 16 from a vessel identifying itself as 'Kayak 1' in the Fiordland. Andrew was within sight of land.

When no further communication was received, ships in the area were diverted to investigate. A full scale aerial search ensued, and Andrew's kayak was located, capsized, late the following evening approximately 30 nautical miles off the coast of New Zealand. Andrew was not found, yet his spirit will live on forever. In my mind, he achieved his goal.

nice and light, reliable and will guide any search party in the last little bit of their locating search. There are some good videos on their website explaining the difference between SPOT and PLB technology which sealed the deal for me.

I'm still interested in a radio or two, both for communicating while climbing in windy conditions on longer routes as well as communicating with other climbers or walkers in the (remote) area. Does anyone have any words of wisdom on good reliable radios and what to get? 1watt? 5watt? Uniden?

Spot with tracking is part of my comms kit when flying so that a/ if conscious, I can send out message (either to say I'm OK, or to request a retreive, or to call in the cavalry to save my arse) b/ if unconscious I can be found as my tracking location isn't moving.
Other comms in my kit includes GPS, mobile phone with Telstra country area coverage, ICOM 41S to talk with mates, ICOM A15 to talk with planes when they get a bit close for my liking.

On 2/09/2012 jgoding wrote:>climbers or walkers in the (remote) area. Does anyone have any words of>wisdom on good reliable radios and what to get? 1watt? 5watt? Uniden?

Joe,
You know where to find me.
GME or Uniden. 2W 'cos they take rechargeable batteries, and strike a balance between weight and power, but 5W if you want maximum range for a weight (and cost) penalty.

On 3/09/2012 GoUp! wrote:>... ICOM A15 to talk with planes when they get a bit close for my liking.

I'm glad you guys have colourful canopies. I was flying a Jabiru eastbound from Lithgow yesterday at 5,500ft and came upon a couple of paragliders near Shipley plateau at my height and one a fair bit lower. Saw them in good time, gave them a wide berth and waggled my wings so as they'd know I'd seen them and it wasn't just a lucky escape! Would you guys be monitoring the area frequency there Stu?